Why Not the 2012 Subaru Impreza / WRX?

Although I am generally very light on the throttle, my wife and I really wish this car had a little more power on tap when needed and that the CVT would wait a little longer before backing off into fuel saver revs when accelerating gently. Secondly, we experience a substantial delay before forward gear is engaged when transitioning between reverse and drive.

We do miss several little features from our previous Volkswagen Jetta, that we didn't even think to consider in our comparisons. Wipers that slow when you stop, the ability to operate windows after you turn off the car, one touch to the control stalk indicate a quick burst of blinks for a lane change, the absence of some interior lights and rear seat vents, no indicators to let you know a bulb is out; these are among several things we didn't even realise we would be missing. And note we had a bottom of the line Jetta, while this is an almost maxed-out Impreza Limited.

Response from Member3399

9:24 am October 21, 2015

I've never owned a Volkswagen but rarely see one that is over 5 years old where I live on the Canadian east coast. When I do it's very rusted. That and the fact that VW is now known as a lying and cheating company, for their "efforts" on the diesel models, I think you dodged a bullet. I think it's kind of funny that you own low-profile tires unless you live in a very warm climate, but everyone has their preferences. My 2011 Impreza will jerk forward if I am not super smooth to begin acceleration. Other than that, it provides me with all the necessary passing power when I need it, which is rare. If you don't like the way your transmission operates you can swich over to sports mode which will give you complete control like a manual transmission. I do agree that Subaru could have been more generous with certain niceties, such as smart wipers, but more than make up for it in the quality of the build that you will appreciate if you keep your car for a long time. I see many older (7 years +) Subarus in my areas without any rust.

Response from timneyb

4:03 pm October 21, 2015

3 years and no problems, and that longer that goes the more I'll like it :) Wish it was the WRX sometimes, but I'vegot used to the car, don't care about most of the little niceties that have been traded away to make the mechanicals more reliable, and the way it behaves feels more natural (there was actually a computer update from the manufacturer that improved the behaviour of the tranmission somewhat).

It's surviving the North East winters, so it's good to see it survives north of the border too, and maybe we'll even pass it on to the kid one day.
FYI, silly low profile tires came with the package that included leather (which we thought a good idea to deal with any little kid spillages).